Kobe Bryant and LeBron James are frequently compared to each other, but did you know that the Lakers once tried to trade their star for James?
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Lakers called the Cavaliers in the summer of 2007 to see if they were interested in a swap of players. Though the report sounds blasphemous, you have to recall the context.
It was during that time that Bryant wanted out of Los Angeles and was making it known publicly that he wanted a trade (read this from 2007). He was dissatisfied with the Lakers, the team’s front office, and he wanted out. There were talks about him wanting a trade to the Chicago Bulls.
Ultimately the Lakers kept Bryant and made some big moves such as signing Pau Gasol, which helped Kobe win another two titles — his first without Shaq — giving him five total and adding to his legacy.
James had just come off a season where he led the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals and got swept by the San Antonio Spurs. Cleveland’s front office people reportedly remember the trade proposal because it was the only time someone had called asking about trading for James.
Though Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak would not comment on the trade, Bryant did. He said he never would have approved a trade to Cleveland, instead saying Chicago, San Antonio and Phoenix were the places he would have approved.
It’s wild to think that two of the biggest superstars of our generation could have been traded for each other. Of course, with James being so young and Kobe being older, it was unlikely for the Cavs to make such a deal, but just the fact that a trade like that was proposed somewhere outside of a fantasy basketball league is pretty mind-blowing. From 2007-2015, one of the two players played in the Finals each year. Unfortunately, fans never got to see them battle each other in the Finals.
